Today I decided my outerwear was getting a little rank and needed to take a spin in the washer. I was especially nervous about washing my Nike Element Max Shield jacket. It's too expensive to accidentally ruin in the dryer!
(Quick digression - I love this jacket! It was hands down the best gear purchase I made last year. It is warm. It is light. It is flexible - you can put the hood on or off. You can pull out the face gaiter when you need extra warmth. There are ninja mittens you can pull out of the sleeves. It has good reflectivity. It is easy to tuck gloves into the pockets during your run. My only regret is that I bought black instead of purple. And believe me, there is no way I can justify buying a second one.)
Back to the laundry. I gathered my Nike Element Max Shield jacket, Saucony pink stripe run vibe beanie, Outdoor Research PL 400 Gloves, and two Runnerbox buffs. They were all black ("wash with like colors"). I set the washer on cold, active wear, and did not use fabric softener. I zipped up everything on the jacket and made sure all Velcro was fastened. Next time I will remove the face gaiter from the hood and wash it separately.
After the wash, I pulled out the Runnerbox buffs and set them aside to air dry. I put everything else in the dryer on casual (low) setting. About halfway through the cycle I took the beanie out as it was dry. I turned the jacket and gloves inside out because that is where they were the wettest. Next time I will turn them inside out from the start. After the dryer cycle I realized the face gaiter was still wet inside the hood, hence my plan to take it out in the future.
And there you have it - successful laundering of running gear! Perhaps not the most fascinating of subjects, but still an important hurdle faced by us runners.
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